Forever Wild protects more than 200,000 acres of the most unique outdoor recreation areas in Alabama. On Thursday, February 4, the board of directors for the Forever Wild Land Trust convened in Montgomery for their first quarterly meeting of 2016. These meetings are open to the public, and the board encourages public comments on potential land acquisitions and other issues related to the program.

At this meeting, representatives from organizations, businesses, and communities spoke up to share their own experiences with Forever Wild and advocate for the program and its services. Hunting, fishing and outdoor recreation bring in more than $2 billion each year to our state’s economy. Forever Wild lands allow local communities to capitalize on this market, and examples of those economic benefits were highlighted at today’s meeting. Below are short descriptions of these public comments as examples of the benefits of Forever Wild and its economic and social impact on the communities across the state that host Forever Wild properties.

Jacksonville Mayor Johnny Smith praised the Rails to Trails program, stating that the local bike trails have improved his town’s quality of life and made Jacksonville a more marketable destination for businesses and residents. Jacksonville is part of the Chief Ladiga Trail, and Mayor Smith credits the trail for attracting visitors that support local businesses.

Old Cahawba Archaeological Park advocated for the expansion of Dallas County’s Hall Tract to help in their efforts to showcase Alabama’s first capital city for the 2019 state bicentennial celebration. This land will also be used to preserve the hunting traditions that are so important to Dallas County and Alabama’s Black Belt Region.

A proposed addition on Shades Creek would double the length of canoe trails on the Cahaba River, and would connect to the Tannehill Ironworks Historical State Park. This would allow visitors to camp in the park and put their kayak or canoe in on the Forever Wild property, providing an opportunity for recreation that is convenient to both Tuscaloosa and Birmingham.

Coastal Land Trust is seeking to preserve more land in the Mobile-Tensaw Delta through Forever Wild. The Delta is the foundation of Coastal Alabama’s seafood industry in addition to a recreation destination for both tourists and locals.

The Alabama Hiking Trail Society offered their continued support to the board, and discussed their success in planning and building hiking trails across the state.

The Cherokee Ridge Alpine Trail Association advocated that the board move forward on a proposed land acquisition in Elmore County near Lake Martin for which they have a planned network of hiking trails.

The Forever Wild Land Trust preserves land for public use, including hiking, hunting, birding, birding, and horseback riding. Created in 1992, Forever Wild was renewed in 2012 for another 20 years by constitutional amendment that passed with more than 75% of the vote.

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Tomorrow evening (February 27), Alabama State Lands Division will host a public listening session at Jefferson State Community College’s Shelby campus regarding Alabama’s Forever Wild Land Trust. The event will begin at 6 PM.

Forever Wild, established through constitutional amendment in 1992, is a program that acquires and maintains public lands for recreational use, increasing public access to activities like hunting and fishing. The land has also been used to expand various State Parks with over 200 miles of trails added since its inception. While so much crucial work has been done to conserve our natural resources and create accessibility to our state’s natural wonders, the land trust still owns only a fraction of lands available in Alabama.

We want to encourage our readers to attend this public listening session to learn more about Forever Wild’s five-year plan and give feedback about their own experiences on Alabama’s public lands. It is also a great opportunity to share any suggestions for future activities on currently held Forever Wild lands. If you are not able to attend the meeting tomorrow, you can go to Forever Wild’s website and submit any comments at the bottom of their Five-Year Plan page. We’ll be live-tweeting the event tomorrow. Follow us on Twitter at @Conserve_AL